My favorite window

In 2011, I took this picture of Zainab and became obsessed with trying to recreate it. This is nothing more than simple natural light shot from a 20"x30" window in my basement. I was amazed at how beautiful a simple window could create such stunning light.

I fell in love with the highlights, light direction and the contrast that this mighty little window could produce. Of course because we're talking natural light specifics I was limited to shooting during daylight at certain times of the day.

Over the years I continued to recreate and improve on this type of shot. Last winter I took one my favorite images of this style with Sasha (below). I had many people contact me about this shot asking for something similar.

The shot above was processed using Nik Software for an edgier and raw black and white effect. I've been using Nik Software since early 2014.  When it comes to the feeling of these images, I make sure to talk to my subjects about conveying a moody, more serious expression. As you'll notice there are very few smiles in the galleries below.

In 2012 I took this shot with the amazing Amanda. I just love how the light wraps around her, shows a lot and very little at the same time.

I still didnt realize I was really onto something yet. 

In 2013 I took some stunning beauty shots of DasJia [day-zja]. I started to pay more attention to time of day, cloudy vs sunny vs shade up or down and began to work at it.

Unfortunately for 2013 the majority of my shoots were not from my home studio and the few that were I neglected to use my special little window. This next shot of CarrieJo is the only other "window" shot from 2013. Still a favorite.

In 2014 I really drilled myself in this shot. I tried it with almost everyone I shot that year. Previous to this year I was a Canon shooter, from the 5D Mark I to the the Mark III sho0ting with either my 100mm 2.8 (non L) or 50mm 1.4. As of this year I switched over to the Nikon D750 and used either my 85mm 1.8 or 50mm 1.8 and loving the new results. Due to various times of day and weather conditions my settings changed drastically. Some of the images are ISO 100 (CarrieJo above) to ISO 3200 (8th image below). Shutter speeds range from 1/60 to 1/400 but aperture is usually within f/1.8-2.5. Although its rare I do something use a reflector.

Click images to view in full size.

 

Here are some more favorites from 2015.

Click images to view in full size.

Looking forward to the rest of this year with you faces.

Portraits: Erika B.

On Sunday I had the esteemed pleasure to photograph Erika. Erika was referred to me by Ariel who I've photographed several times. Both Erika and Ariel are Ms. Virginia pageant contestants with impressive educational and professional resumes. Erika came to me because she was looking to do something outside of the pageant photography world to start building her portfolio. She pitched a few ideas my way and we set a date.

Among her various accomplishments Erika is a recent law graduate from UVA who is passionate about public defense. She's originally from South Carolina. Also a transitioner from the pageant world she was Miss Montana United States 2014, Miss Delaware US international 2014, and Dominion State Miss 2014, also Miss Charlottesville USA 2013, Miss Southern Virginia USA 2014. Currently she's prepping to compete for Miss Virginia 2015.

From the moment Erika arrived she was pleasant, easy to talk to and had a reassuring confidence that had me looking forward to photographing her. As we began to shoot the communication was great, we tossed ideas and back and forth and she easily took direction while putting in her own creativity. I was so pleased with the images I wish we had more time to shoot more. Enjoy them below after my little rant.

Hair & Makeup by my good friend and client Tamara Montgomery.

On another note: I'm looking forward to watching Erikas future accomplishments as she'll soon be interviewing at MMG Models. I recently found out that Erika shot with another photographer [who shall not be named] a few days after our shoot. He came highly recommended and while his work is decent his personality leaves me to question why he even bothers photographing people. I spoke to Erika about what happened and it sounded like a nightmare. He criticized her body from the beginning and tried to dissuade her from pursuing her dream. He went as far as to tell her not to go to New York for her upcoming interview. What makes it worse is that she hired him for his photography services, not to be belittled and made to cry. It really angers me that someone can be so callous towards an individual in her situation. I just dont get the mentality. This industry and media is already extremely tough on young girls and women. Instead of continuing the trend, why not support and use constructive criticism if you to help instead of knock down?

It scary to think that this guy claims to be passionate about photographing people and an expert with pageants contestants, models and high school seniors. I can only imagine how many people he has done this to. I can only hope that karma will makes it way back to him.

End rant.


Amanda in Baltimore

Its been a while since I've photographed Amanda. This time we set the bar high based on the circumstances. A sunrise shoot (without a sunrise), in Baltimore directly after picking her up from the bus station coming in from New York. She worked a gig the night before, zero sleep and she rocked it - as usual. Concept was simple, there was an abandoned bus/train yard that caught my eye and begged for a shoot so I contacted her with the idea and she was game. Fortunately the weather was very pleasant, low humidity, no mosquitoes or harassment from passer-bys.

I mixed the lighting up a bit, using a combination of natural light (sun and shade) and some off-camera lights. The lit shots were done using 2 Godox v860n's + 36" triggered by the FT-16s inside a Photek Softlighter II 36" . 


Assignment: Boxing with Ramona

Ramona is a force to be reckoned with! From SolidCore, to boxing, to neuroscience and a plethora of other amazing attributes, shes an all-around badass. My approach to this shoot was a combo of portraits and photojournalism of her as she really trained. I asked for her input about her passion and here are her words.

"When Lionel and I first discussed doing a shoot together, he told me he wanted to do a shoot with me doing something that I love. Immediately, I said boxing, because though I've only been doing it for a couple of years, it has become a huge part of my life and how I identify myself. I came to boxing on a whim - I was a triathlete and was looking for something new to learn and to add variety to my workouts. Friends told me I would probably like it, so I looked around for someplace that would teach beginners and found Downtown Boxing Club - online reviews made it sound like just the kind of old school gym that boxing movies are made of. It was all that and more. The owner Dave White, is a fascinating character who has taught me so much more than just how to throw a great jab. The other boxers at the club come from all over the city and from all backgrounds, but everyone has one thing in common - we all love that feeling of our gloves making that perfect contact with something. Over the last two years, the gym has become one of those places in my life that makes me happy, no matter what.

Dave was kind enough to let us shoot at the gym one afternoon, which made this session all the more special to me because this isn't just a boxing gym, it's MY gym. Lionel did an amazing job of capturing the essence of it with phenomenal lighting and angles, and did an incredible job of capturing the focus I feel when I'm hitting the bags, but could never see for myself. This shoot was incredibly special to me, and it was an honor to get to work with a talent like Lionel (for the second time!) I hope you enjoy the results."

Sidenote: I took a SolidCore class on Saturday and talk about a challenge. I am sore all over!